Shohreh Dupuis left her job as city manager of Laguna Beach two years ago, in the wake of a squabble with a city council member, a threat of a harassment lawsuit, and an inquiry into into how her house came to be smeared with feces. Details of that municipal soap opera were unique, but at least one aspect of her departure was not: Laguna Beach agreed to pay Dupuis nine months salary and health insurance, a separate settlement of about $223,000, and another $10,000 to cover her legal fees.